Case Study

Gort Glas Block, St. Josephs Hospital, Ennis, Co. Clare
Architect
Kevin Jackson Architects
Project manager
Kevin Jackson Architect
Project completion date
Client
HSE Estates West
Gort Glass Block

Project Background

Kevin Jackson Architects were appointed by HSE Estates West to refurbish and extend the Gort Glas building on the south-east corner of the St Joseph’s Hospital site in Ennis County Clare.

The project provides for the provision of an outpatient consulting / assessment facility for elderly (mostly) mental health patients and includes 5 consulting rooms with associated facilities including administrative facilities at the upper floor.

 

The Challenge

The existing building was originally constructed in the seventies and the external walls were required to provide optimum levels of air-tightness, while also improving the thermal performance. Due to the nature of the existing structure, the issue of moisture management was also a concern for the design team.

Approach

The design team, Kevin Jackson and Associates in Limerick, specified the ISOVER Optima wall lining system as not only did it meet the project requirements in terms of the air-tightness strategy, thermal comfort and moisture management of the existing building,  but previous experience on a very similar project in Limerick two years ago proved to be a very successful solution and provided the client with optimum performance and results.
 

Key Learnings

The key learnings from the project are:

  • Planning ahead – Due to the strategy of the design in terms of fire, it was critical that the Optima system was incorporated into the design to ensure that there were no compromises with the fire compartmentation
  • Team briefings – Site meetings to instruct and provide support to the installers at an early stage to facilitate ease of installations thus ensuring the quality and performance characteristics of the Optima system were met.

Global Approach – Discussions on-site with other trades was a crucial aspect of the installation. Getting ‘buy-in’ and co-operation from electricians and plumbers so that there is an understanding of the importance of the air-tightness strategy.

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